Restaurant checking system.



PATENTBD JUNE l, 1905.

A. NELSON. RESTAURANT GHECKING SYSTEM.

APPLICATION FILED DBG. 27,1901- 2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

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INVEN TUR PATBNTBD JUNE 13, 1905.

A. NELSON. Y RESTAURANT CHEGKING SYSTEM.

APPLICATION FILED DBU. 27. 1901.

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W/ nvfsif Aff' UNITED STATES Patented June 13, 1905.

PATENT OFFICE,

'ALBERT NELSON, OF SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA.

RESTAURANT CHECKING SYSTEM.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 792,280, dated. J une 13, 1905.

Application iileal December 27, 1901. Serial Nn. 87,449. Y

To rif/ 11710711, if muy concern:

Be it known that I', ALBERT NnLsoN, asubjectof the King of Sweden and Norway, residing at San Francisco, in the county of San Francisco and State of California, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Restaurant Checking Systems, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to an improved restaurant checking system, the object of my invention being to provide. a system of checks and other devices in connection therewith by means of which considerable advantage will be obtained in the making out of orders by the customer, in the filling of said orders, in the payment thereof, in the checking up of said payments by the cashier, and in various other ways incidental to the restaurant business.

Among other advantages obtained by my improved system the following may be particularly mentioned: First, the system saves time both to the guest., waiter, and to the bookkeeper or cashier; secondly, it provides a perfeet safeguard against errors or dishonesty on the part of the waiter, as well as other em ployees; thirdly, it furnishes the waiter with a receipt for every check and the money therefor handed by him to the cashier; fourthly, it assists in itemizing the number of checks used and the number of guests served by each waiter, also separately the totals of the orders from the kitchen. from the bar, and from the cigar-counter; tifthly, it furnishes more accurate service; sixthly, it assists the guest in selecting his order; seventhly, after once introduced the daily cost of operation of this system amounts to no more than the printers hill.

In the accompanyingdrawings, Figure 1 is a perspective View of a restaurant check-book made under my improved system, the top cover being broken away to save space. Fig. 2 is a similar view showing the inside of the back cover, the checks themselves being broken awayto save space. Fig. 3 is a View of a bill of fare having a facsimile of a check attached thereto.

Referring to the drawings, it will be seen that the checks a are furnished in book form,

each book containing fifty or more checks bound together in any suitable manner. Said checks may be of any size, paper, or color. Each check is attached along a perforated line 71 to a stub c at the top, said stubs being 55 all bound together in a book, as shown, so that when the checks themselves are detached the stubs will remain bound in the book. The cheek has printed thereon for the use of the guests, first, a column in which will be 6o written the number of portions required of each article ordered; next, a column e, conaining on the left a printed general description thereof; lastly.Y on the right a column f for the price of the article. Opposite the line for the total are the printed words "Kitchen orders, and below the same are printed the words Been wine, liquors on one line, the total price of these being carried out on one line, as shown, and below these are the words 7o Ls n Cigars. clgarettes 0n another Ime. The totals for these are carried out separately from that for the kitchen orders and are added thereto, as shown, to obtain the total amount. The waiter will then write in a space g provided therefor in the upper right-hand corner the number of the table and in another space,

l, the number of persons. He will also write in a space his own number for the purpose of identification.- The check and an indelible 8o pencil will be handed to the guest, who will then write upon the check the name of the article which he desires to order, the number of portions thereof, and the price and will hand the same to the waiter.

An important advantage arising from this system is that the waiter can take a number ot' orders from different parties at the same time with less chance of making a mistake as to the dishes to be served to each party, for 9o at any time he can refer to the order itself, which will show that the particular dish about which he is in doubt is intended for acertain table.

In order to insure against fraud on the part of thel waiter, I provide a bill of fare (shown at j in Fig. 3) having attached thereto on the left-hand s'de a facsimile of the check which is to be presented to the guest, said facsimile having printed thereon in red ink, as shown LAM! at a notice or caution not to pay a bill presented upon another check. Matter in red ink in a check and bill of fare is indicated in the drawings by underlining the words. For further security it is to be noticed that at the bottom of the two pages (page 1 showing the facsimile and page Q showing the bill of fare) is printed a sentence of reading-matter extending right across the whole sheet, so that if it is attempted to present a bill of fare without the facsimile attached thereto the guest will be immediately apprised of the fact that a page has been torn otf. This will also be indicated hy the statement in red letters extending along the left margin of the page 2 that On the other side (page 1) isa facsimile of the check and bill-never subject to change. Itis therefore practicallyimpossible for the waiter to present undetected a bill of fare without having the facsimile of the check attached thereto, and, again, the facsimile of the cheek apprises the guest of the exact character of the check which is presented to him when making his order. (ln the facsimile of the check attached to the bill of fare is written the name ot the head waiter, so that the guest knows what signature should appear as that of the head waiter upon the bill presented to him. The same head waiter`s signature that appears on the facsimile must appear on the check. After the meal and before presenting the cheek for payment the waiter will obtain the signature of the head waiter in a space n provided therefor at the foot of the page. Below this is also a notice to the effect that the bill must not be collected without this signature. The waiter will now hand the money and check to the cashier, who will stamp or write his name in the space u provided therefor on the stub and will write on the said stub the number of the waiter and the amount of money presented by him in spaces p q, respectively, provided therefor. In this way the waiter will have in the stubs of his check-book a series of receipts from the cashier for the amounts of money turned in.

Each check and the corresponding stub has printed thereon in red ink the book-number 2 and also the check-number s. The booknumber is the same for all the checks of each book, while the cheek-numbers run throughout the book from 1" to o0" or whatever is the number of the checks in the book. 'It is thus possible to positively identify any particular check otl the same restaurant. For the purpose of distinguishing between cheek-books and checks of different restaurants each restaurant has printed upon the stub and on the check the trade-niark or other distinguishing device t of said restaurant.

The cashier on receiving the checks from the different waiters will arrange all the checks from the same waiter together in numerical order.

On the inside of the back cover u of each book are printed various blanks to le filled in, the nature of t-he blanks being sufficiently indicated by the printed matter opposite the same. and are also printed the rules` to be observed in connection with said system.

By means of this system it is practically impossible for the waiter to destroy a cheek and appropriate the money received with said check. Thus, for instance, should the waiter destroy check No. 15 the cashier in arranging the checks in numerical order will come to a gap between the numbers 14, 16 and will instantly call the waiter up and inquire for the cheek No. 15, and the waiter will be obliged to produce the same, it being one of the rules of the system that the waiter shall personally return to the office all unused checks. (See rule No. 7 in Fig. 2.)

The edges of the book have formed therein asmall cut fr on the perforated line 2, the purpose of these edges being to hold a rubber band around the book.

The covers et' the book have also printed thereon the number of the book, as shown at fuin dotted lines in Fig. 2.

1 claim- 1. In a checking system for restaurants or the like, a check-book, comprising stubs bound in the book. checks removably attached thereto, said stubs and cheeks having each marked thereon the book-number and also the checknumber, the stubs having thereon a blank appropriately designated for the signature of the cashier, the checks having thereon a blank appropriately designated for the signature of the head waiter, and said stubs and checks having marked thereon the trade-mark or other sign of the restaurant extending across the line of division between the stub and check, substantially as described.

2. In a checking system for restaurants or the like, in combination with checks detachably connected with stubs bound in a book, a

sheet of two pages havingr printed on onel page a bill of fare and on the opposite page a facsimile of the check, substantially as described.

3. In a checking system for restaurants or the like, in combination with a restaurantcheck, a sheet of two pages on one of which is printed the bill of fare, and on the opposite page of which is printed a facsimile of the check, and having also a line ot' printed matter extending across both pages, substantially as described.

In wit-ness whereof I have hereunto set my hand in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

v ALBERT NELSON. "itnesses:

Fimxois M. Vv' mol-1T, Jouxv H. FISHER.

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